This invention relates to a reproduction apparatus and a reproduction method wherein a term of term-managed contents data is managed by a timer.
In recent years, such a service as to allow an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer to access an electrical music distribution (EMD) server through a predetermined network to receive contents such as music data from the EMD server so that the user of the information processing apparatus may enjoy the contents has been and is being popularized. Among contents distributed in this manner, some contents are distributed free of charge on condition that enjoyment of the contents is permitted only within a predetermined limited period, for example, for advertisement.
An apparatus which handles contents whose term for enjoyment is limited as described above must include a clock function in order to manage the term. Further, power supply is temporarily interrupted upon exchange of a battery or the like, and in order to prepare for such temporary power supply interruption, also it is necessary for an apparatus of the type described to include a power supply backup function.
However, in order to provide a power supply backup function, different power supply wiring line systems must be designed for circuit blocks for which power supply backup is required and circuit blocks for which power supply backup is not required. Therefore, the apparatus of the type described above has a subject to be solved in that it is complicated in circuit configuration and miniaturization of the circuit is difficult.
Further, where an exchangeable primary cell is used as the backup power supply for the power supply, such a trouble may possibly occur that time information is lost because the time within which the power supply can be backed up elapses during an exchanging operation process of the primary cell.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a reproduction apparatus and a reproduction method by which the error of time information which arises from interruption of power supply to a timer which manages a term of term-managed contents data is minimized to allow accurate term management.
In order to attain the object described above, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a reproduction apparatus which operates with a battery for reproducing term-managed main data, comprising main data storage means for storing the term-managed main data, term data storage means for storing term management data to be used for the term-management of the main data, time counting means operating with the battery for counting time, holding means for holding time information counted by the time counting means also when power is not supplied thereto from the battery, and control means for controlling the holding means to hold the time information counted by the time counting means at a predetermined time
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a reproduction apparatus which operates with a battery for reproducing main data term-managed based on term management information, comprising time counting means operable only while power is supplied thereto from the battery for counting time to be used for the term management, holding means for holding the time counted by the time counting means while power from the battery is not supplied to the time counting means, and control means for controlling reproduction of the main data based on the term management information and the time information counted by the time counting means.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a reproduction method for a reproduction apparatus which reproduces term-managed main data using a battery as a power supply, comprising the steps of reading, from a timer which operates with the power supply from the battery to count time and stops the time counting when the power is not supplied from the battery, time information to be used for the term management of the main data and writing the time information into a nonvolatile memory which holds data even when the power is not supplied thereto from the battery, and setting the time information written in the nonvolatile memory to the timer when the power is supplied again after the power supply from the battery is interrupted.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like parts or elements denoted by like reference symbols.